Weekly Report - 04 April 2019 (WR-19-13)

COLOMBIA: US coca accusations ruffle feathers

The issue of narcotrafficking has been central to US-Colombia relations for decades. Since 2000, the two countries have been united by a US foreign aid initiative ‘Plan Colombia’ (‘Peace Colombia’ since 2016) to combat drug trafficking organisations and insurgent groups in Colombia. When President Iván Duque of the right-wing Centro Democrático (CD) assumed office in August last year, he was clear that he shares a common focus with US President Donald Trump: reducing illegal drug production in Colombia. However, Trump’s condemnation of Duque’s efforts in fighting narcotrafficking this week (“he has done nothing for us [the US]”) flies in the face of their prior understanding.